The Philippines is one of several Southeast Asian nations that have a dispute with China over claims to parts of the South China Sea. Containing the ambitions of the region's new superpower is a challenge for smaller countries. That's one reason why the government in Manila is eagerly embracing its old ally: the United States. NHK WORLD's Takafumi Terui reports.
In late November, NHK was allowed to go inside a port facility on the west coast of Luzon Island. Subic Bay is about 3 hours by car northwest of Manila.
Officials gave us special permission to film in a restricted part of the port. The wharf is 700 meters long. That's long enough for an aircraft carrier to tie up. The US Navy plans to use it again. An airfield is beyond the bay, and American forces plan to use it again, too.
This is not the first time that the US military has been stationed at this port. It once served as the US Navy's largest base in Asia. After the Cold War, a rising tide of nationalism in the Philippines led the US to withdraw in 1992.
Three years later, China started building structures on Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands. The reef had been under the effective control of the Philippines.
A British military research firm analyzed another reef and published the results in November. Experts at the firm studied satellite images and concluded that China had almost completed reclamation and was building a runway. A senior officer in the Philippine armed forces said the Chinese military will likely use the facility.
Philippine authorities have responded to China's increasing presence in the region by strengthening military cooperation with the United States. In April they signed an agreement on the joint use of military facilities, clearing the way for US forces to return to Subic Bay.
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/insideasia/2014120402.html
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